Window-cleaner



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

P. H. UTOOLE.

WINDOW CLEANER. No. 427,896. Patented May 13,1890.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. P. H. OTOOLE.

WINDOW CLEANER. No. 427,896. Patented May 18, 1890.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PATRICK H. OTOOLE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

WINDOW-CLEAN ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 427,896, dated May 13,y1890.

Application filed July 29, 1889. Serial No. 319,031. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, PATRICK H. OTooLE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement inWindow-Cleaners, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention has for its object the provision of a window-cleaningattachment for large windows, to render the cleaning and polishing ofthe latter in a thorough manner easy and quick without the use of water,or, if employed at all, water in greater quantity than would benecessary to merely loosen the substance of which the pane is to becleaned.

To this end my invention consists in an attachment movable in verticalguides at opposite edges of the window and provided with ascrubbing-surface to bear normally against the window-pane and operativeto clean the latter as it is moved over its surface.

My invention further consists in the general construction ofthevattachment, and also in details of construction and combination ofparts hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure l is a view in elevation of a window provid edwith my windowcleaning attachment; Fig. 2, an enlarged broken sectiontaken on the line 2 2 of Fig. l and viewed in the direction of thearrows 5 Fig. 3, a broken perspective view of details; Fig. 4, a view incross-section of a detail 5 and Figs. 5 and 6, a View in elevation and aview in section, respectively, of a detail A, is a window-pane; B B, thesides or vstiles of the window-frame; B', the upper windowrail, and B2the lower window-rail. On the upper window-rail and journaled inbrackets t t is a spring-operated roller C, extending the full width ofthe window-pane and formed toward opposite ends with spools s. NVoundupon the spools s, to unwind therefrom against the resilience of thespring-roller C, are cords r, carrying at their free ends hooks r.

D is the cleaner, comprising a strip of wood or metal o, cushioned onits face, where it is covered, preferably, with chamoisskin or otherabsorbent material p.

In Fig. 2 two ways of rendering the scrubbmg-surface of the cleaneryielding are shown. In the cleaner to the left, or on the inner side pof the window-pane, the face is cushioned or rendered yielding by aseries of spiral springs fr, while that on the opposite side is providedwith a cushion formed of soft material y, as rubber or felt. Towardopposite ends of the cleaner D are eyes r2, by means of which it may beattached to the hooks fr and suspended upon the cords fr. Projectingfrom opposite extremities of the cleaner are bifurcated attachments o,arranged to receive between their forks, and slide upon, verticalguide-rods E on opposite sides of the window. The guide-rods E extendthe full length of the window-pane, and toward their lower extremitiesare flanged outward to permit the attachments o' on the ends of thecleaner to be readily slipped upon or removed from the guide-rods, whichlatter, as shown, are secured at their ends to the window-frame. Whenthe cleaner D is suspended upon the hooks r', the resilient quality ofthe spring-roller C operates to maintain the cleaner at the top of thewindow.

A cord or chain n, secured to the cleaner, hangs to the bottom of thewindow and affords a medium by means of which the cleaner may be drawndown against the resistance of the spring-roller.

The guides E are of stiif material and operate to maintain the cleanerat all times and with required pressure against the windowpane. Tosteady the guide-rods and prevent the pressure which the cleaner shouldexert upon the window-pane from forcing out the guide-rods at theircenters, I provide braces E', preferably of the shape shown in Fig. 3,and having reduced extensions m, which are secured to the window-Stilesabout midway of the lengths of the guide-rods and extend with theirparts m into perforations m in the guide-rods, thereby operating tosteady the latter without interfering with the movement past them of theattachments o.

On the upper side of the cleaner and secured thereto to move with it, isa liquid-receptacle D in the form of a hollow tube, extendingsubstantially the full length of the cleaner and provided on its underside with a line of perfor-ations Z, and a sliding valve 7c, extending.and sliding longitudinally of the receptacle and held against the underside of the latter by guides, (see Fig. 4,) is provided withperforations 7c', corresponding in rela- IOO tive position with those ofthe tube D', and they are capable of being moved into or out ofcoincidence with the latter perforations to increase, reduce, or shutoit entirely the escape of liquid from the tube by sliding the valve. Onits upper side the tube is pi'ovided with a iilling-opening Z', whichmaybe closed with a cap Z2.

The operation of my improved windowcleaner is as follows: The receptacleD is.

filled with liquid, preferably of a highly-volatile natu re-sueh asgasoline-an d the cleaner D caused to move up and down over the surfaceof the window-pane, the downward movement being eiiiected by drawingupon the cord or chain n and the upward movement bythe resilience of thespring-roller C. The rubbing quickly removes the substances adhering tothe glass, and the operation may be kept up until the surface isthoroughly polished, which may be effectively accomplished in acomparatively short time. That the downward pull upon the cleaner tolower it may always be in a direction substantially parallel with thesurface of the window-pane and not away from the latter to decrease thepressure against it of the cleaner, I provide a pulley fi upon the lowerwindow-rail, under which the cord orcliain n is caused to travel, andfrom which it may be drawn by the operator in a more or less nearlyhorizontal direction.

As the spring of the roller C is necessarily one possessing considerableresistance, the power required lo draw the cleaner down is such as tomake direct handling ot the cord or chain n by the operator in a measureinconvenient, owing to the tendency of the cord to hurt his hands. InFigs. I and 2 I show rings 7L upon the free ends of the cords or chainsn, which afford handles for the operator to grasp. As the employment oitrings 7L or like handles, which are capable of holding the cord or chainn only at the end of the latter, make it necessary for the operator tomove away from the window in drawing down the cleaner and toward thewindow while the cleaner rises, I prefer to employ the handle F, (shownin Figs. 5 and 0,) which is especially designed to overcome thisobjection. It coinprises a sleeve g, carrying in fixed relation with ita housing g, provided with a slot g2, and arranged within the housing toafford a socket gg, into which fits loosely an end of a sleeve f. rlhesleeve f projects beyond the housing, being provided within the latterwith disks j" f', which afford between thcin a spool, and providedadjacent to the free end of the housing g', to overlap the end of thelatter, as

shown, with a flanged disk f2. The sleeves are held together in looserelation by a pin c, which extends longitudinally and centrally throughthe sleeves, as shown, and surrounding the pin is a spiral spring d,secured at opposite ends, respectively, to the sleeves g and f, at theinner extremities of the latter. The outerperipheryof the disk f2 isprovided with notches f3 and the housing g with a springdog e to engagethe said notches and having the tliuinb-levcr c. The sleeves g and j"are turned in opposite directions to wind up the spring d, turning inthe contrary direction by the resilience of the spring being preventedby engagement of the dog c with the notches f3. The end of the cord orchain n is then passed through theslot g2 and secured upon the spoolbetween the disks f. In the working of myiinprovementthe eleanerD ismoved up and down over comparatively narrow limits at a time, so thatwhen the lower part of the window is reached the space above has beengone over alittle at a time and thoroughly polished. lVhen the handle I?is employed, as the cleaner is drawn down from one extent of surface toanother the cord or chain a is held and allowed to wind upon the spoolof the handle. In this way the cord or chain may be shortened as desiredand the operator reA main in one place. The spring ol' the handle F isweak as compared with that et the roller C, so that when it is desiredto have the cleaner ascend pressure 'upon the thumb-lever c to releasethe dog c vfrom the notches f will enable the spring-roller C to draw upthe cleaner and at the saine time unwind the cord or chain n from thehandle lf.

Then not in use, the cleaner D may be d `awn down to the base of thewindow, de taehed from the hooks fr', and removed l'roin the guide-rods,the hooks o" being fastened to eyes l) in the window-stiles to preventthem l'rom being drawnr up out of reach by the roller (l.

As shown in the figures, my window-cleaners may b'e adjusted upon bothsides of a window, and by causing the cord or chain fn. to extendthrough a hole a in the lower rail of the sash both cleaners may beoperated from the same side of the window.

That I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, ish-- l.The combination, with a window, ot vertical guides at opposite edges ofthe window, a cleaner D, extending vacross the window in. contact withthe window-pane and movable in the guides, and a liquid-receptacle D',above and in fixed relation with the cleaner and having an outletleading to the cleaner, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

The combinationgvith a window, of vertical guidcs at opposite edges ofthe window, a cleaner D, extending across the window in contact with thewindow-pane and movablein the guides, and spring mechanism connectingthe cleaner with the upper side of the window-frame and operating todraw the cleaner in an upward direction, whereby when it is moved byhand in the downward direction it will be returned by the action ot thespring, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In a cleaning attachment :t'or windows, the combination ot aspring-actuated roller C, extending across the top of the window,

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tion of the spri11g-1olle1,m1d :L rubbing effect 1o is produced by thecleaner upon the glass by movement of the cleaner in either direction,substzmtolly as described.

PATRICK H. (VUOLE.

In presence of- J. W. DYRENFORTH, M. J. FROSTe

